Fasting is something we have in common with the previous nation, but why do we fast, is also the same, why they fasted was to get Taqwa, why we fast is also to get Taqwaa, I want to talk to you practically what does that mean?
Taqwa is you know the people translate that as a fear of Allah, Taqwa comes from the word Wiqaya, and Wiqaya actually means “Protection”, Taqwa is similar to “Ittiqaa” to seek protection, to try to protect yourself, that’s why on Judgment day everybody will try to protect themselves.
Allah says: Allah gave you fasting so you can protect yourself. what does that mean? let’s try to understand. We human beings have certain training, you have to go through training, if you want to get good at something especially physical training like if somebody, if they want to become a soldier or they want to become a police officer, and they have to go through certain kinds of training and their body learns to adapt like at the beginning, it’s hard and then it gets easier and easier and easier for them.
This idea of training or putting yourself in difficulty it helps you, by the way when you’re in training things are easy when you’re in the training program things are easy, for example when they train firemen they set up a fire to put it out, but they control the fire. it’s not like a real fire in a building it’s controlled so it’s easier, they make you jump down a building, but it’s easier it’s not like the real thing, they go easy on you and then when you get good enough, then they put you in the real-life situation, you understand that right now. The same thing happens with fasting, you’re constantly feeling something, aren’t you? Especially in Qatar, you’re constantly feeling thirst, you’re constantly feeling hunger, there is not a minute that goes by that you’re not feeling it. Your throat is fighting with you your lungs are fighting with you your throat is yelling at you, it says give me water, whether you like it or not your throat is begging you and you tell your throat; shut up throat, it’s not Maghrib yet, your stomach starts talking to you sometimes very loudly; ‘man come on what’s going on up there where’s the supply’ and you’re like it’s Fajr dude. You have a conversation with yourself, but you know what? there’s a war going on inside you when you’re fasting, there’s a war physical war going on inside you, your throat is against you your stomach is against you your body is getting weaker and begging you, please disobey Allah, please this will be a lot and you stay the entire day fasting, fighting your body and you say no my heart is submitted to Allah and therefore I don’t care if my entire body wants something, I will not give it to it. that’s what I do when I fast.
Why is that important? because when the fasting is over, you have to continue to train your heart and your heart is ready to control your body, so you’re not just going to eat what you want, you’re not just going to go where you want, you’re not just going to look at what you want, because all of those things your body wants, and when you fast the body got weaker and who got stronger? the heart got stronger, and whereas Taqwa rests, as Quran says: the heart is with a place of taqwa. if we don’t remember this then we become just like Bani Israel, they fasted but they didn’t have taqwa.